ASTROTECH UNVEILS $30 MILLION FLORIDA SPACECRAFT PROCESSING FACILITY
October 29, 2001, Washington, D.C. - SPACEHAB, Inc. (NASDAQ/NMS: SPAB), a leading provider of commercial space services, and its wholly owned subsidiary Astrotech Space Operations last week celebrated the completion of Astrotech's new $30 million Spacecraft Processing Facility (SPF) expansion in Titusville, Florida, in a ceremony dedicating the building to the late Capt. Chester M. (Chet) Lee, USN (ret.), a former president of SPACEHAB and chairman of Astrotech's board of directors.
On October 25, SPACEHAB Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Shelley A. Harrison and Astrotech Senior Vice President and General Manager John B. Satrom officially named the building after Capt. Lee, who passed away in February 2000, and recognized the contributions of company employees, government officials, and finance officers who played a role in completing the project. The new facility "would not have been possible without the commitment and support of our two anchor customers, The Boeing Company and Lockheed Martin Corporation. This expansion demonstrates our commitment to them and to the future of the commercial space industry," said Satrom. "This new facility will contribute to a number of goals that were important to Chet - economic growth, national competitiveness, a strong aerospace industry - and, of course, the promotion of space commerce," said Dr. Harrison.
The new facility will accommodate both 4-meter and 5-meter class satellites with weights in excess of 10,000 pounds and payload fairings up to 75 feet long. The SPF is the only satellite processing facility at Florida's Kennedy Space Center/Cape Canaveral Air Force Station launch complex specifically designed to accommodate five-meter payload fairings for Lockheed Martin Atlas V and Boeing Delta IV Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) missions, scheduled to begin launching in calendar year 2002. Astrotech anticipates that its satellite processing rate could increase from an average of eight per year over the past 10 years to as much as 15 per year with the SPF now open.
Astrotech's Florida Payload Processing Facility is located on a 62-acre tract approximately three miles west of Kennedy Space Center in Titusville. The complex consists of nine major buildings, including the new SPF, dedicated to spacecraft processing, payload and support equipment storage, and customer office accommodations. The new building increases the company's total Florida space by 50 percent adding over 50,000 square feet. Astrotech has long-term contracts in place with Boeing and Lockheed Martin/ILS for work at the SPF that provide guaranteed minimum revenues through 2010.
Founded in 1984, with more
than $100 million in annual revenue, SPACEHAB, Inc., is a leading provider of
commercial space services. The company develops, owns, and operates habitat
and laboratory modules and cargo carriers aboard NASA's Space Shuttles. It also
supports astronaut training and space station configuration management at NASA's
Johnson Space Center in Houston and builds space-flight trainers and mockups.
SPACEHAB's Astrotech subsidiary provides commercial satellite processing services
at facilities in California and Florida. SPACEHAB's newest strategic growth
initiative, SPACEHAB Huntsville, will provide customer-focused end-to-end services
to the space research community at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,
Alabama. SPACEHAB subsidiary Space Media, Inc.™, brings space into homes
and classrooms worldwide with interactive education programs through STARS Academy
(www.starsacademy.com) and space merchandise
from The Space Store (www.thespacestore.com).
For more information, contact:
Linda Billings, Director of Communications
SPACEHAB, Inc. - Corporate Office
Phone 202/488-3500 x. 201
billings@hqspacehab.com
For pictures, see:
ASO Building Dedication Slideshow